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Bourbon cocktail The Meyer Lansky (1902-1983)

We named this cocktail at The Lumsden Freehouse, the Meyer Lansky after one of the most notorious ‘brains’ of the 20th century when it came to gangsters.

You name it, Lansky was into it, including narcotics, prostitution, pornography, racketeering, extortion, money laundering, etc. In his heyday Forbes named him as one of the 400 richest people in the U.S. with a net worth of over $600 million. Lansky died of lung cancer in Miami at age 83 which considering he was one of the most affluent gangsters of all time is pretty amazing.

What you will need:

Johnny Drum Bourbon 30ml

Cointreau or grand marnier 15ml

Fresh Lemon Juice 15ml (roughly half a lemon)

Orange bitters a dash

Sugar syrup 15ml

Once you have aquired all of the ingredients, it is now just a matter of getting your ‘bartender on’ and pretend you are staring in ‘Cocktail’. You know you have always wanted to, so here is your chance.

Find yourself a shaker tin and glass.If you don’t have access to one then you will need to improvise. Grab a large heavy vessel…a blender will work perfectly for this (just make sure you put the lid on it). Put in a large scoop of ice and add all the ingredients. The sugar syrup is very easy to make, it is just 50/50 sugar and boiling water. Stir this together and let cool before you make the cocktail itself. Shake the tin or the blender hard for about 20 seconds. A blender will be large and a bit bulky but you can do it!

Once the cocktail is shaken well together you need to strain it into a short glass filled with fresh ice. If you have used a blender you can just use the strainer in the lid (if you have used something else and need a strainer, just use a kitchen strainer). Garnish your cocktail with an orange wheel cut fresh for the job. Delicious!